| Stron w wątku: < [1 2] | Translator´s invisibility/visibility Autor wątku: Soledad Bellido
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| "Invisibility" of the author of the source document | May 1, 2016 |
Is it true that a translator would take more care if his/her name were attached to something he/she had translated, the cloak of invisibility removed? I'm not sure.
More often than not, the author of the source texts we translate is equally "invisible". Except in the case of literary works, contracts and legal documents issued by a notary, reports signed by a police officer, etc., the author of the source material is "invisible". Who wrote the instruction manuals, website content, etc. et... See more Is it true that a translator would take more care if his/her name were attached to something he/she had translated, the cloak of invisibility removed? I'm not sure.
More often than not, the author of the source texts we translate is equally "invisible". Except in the case of literary works, contracts and legal documents issued by a notary, reports signed by a police officer, etc., the author of the source material is "invisible". Who wrote the instruction manuals, website content, etc. etc. we are endeavouring to translate? If those authors were identified, would they, too, take more care and write more sense? ▲ Collapse
| | | | Christine Andersen 
Dania
Local time: 03:22
Członek ProZ.com
od 2003
duński > angielski
+ ...
| Maybe not on each document, but translators need to be visible somewhere | May 1, 2016 |
Many people have no idea what translators actually do, and the same applies even to interpreters.
They simply do not think about it. Time and again, I come across the ideas expressed by 'piecework' and 'typists'. Even in a country like Denmark, where almost everything has to be translated one way or another as soon as it crosses the border, and often within the country for visitors, tourists and migrants, ideas are vague. Everyone knows someone who has been abroad for six months and... See more Many people have no idea what translators actually do, and the same applies even to interpreters.
They simply do not think about it. Time and again, I come across the ideas expressed by 'piecework' and 'typists'. Even in a country like Denmark, where almost everything has to be translated one way or another as soon as it crosses the border, and often within the country for visitors, tourists and migrants, ideas are vague. Everyone knows someone who has been abroad for six months and speaks fluent or even 'perfekt' English...
Those who have never actually tried to clean up a text translated by Google have no idea of the block that sets in (for me at least), or that it can actually take longer than translating properly from scratch. Or that a correct-sounding sentence has lost the vital word 'not'.
Crowdsourcing and people's own efforts at communicating - which often go quite well - give the impression that anyone can do it. At the polite conversation level, anyone can, but they don't always think about what happens when conversation dries up. For tourists the solution is at the level of 1. Have another beer/coffee or 2. It was nice meeting you - have a nice day!
Why would translators expect to be paid for doing that kind of thing?
Interpreters in war zones could just stay out of trouble, and if you do technical stuff or law or anything, the expert has written the basic text for you, so you just have to write it in your own language... everyone can read, write and talk, after all.
Somehow we need to change that kind of image. I am not always sure how, but it is worth trying. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Tom in London
Wielka Brytania
Local time: 02:22
Członek ProZ.com
od 2008
włoski > angielski
A good translator should be like a good waiter in a restaurant. Completely invisible, always there when needed, and impeccable in every way. You should be unaware of her/his presence.
Anyone interested can always ask who it is, of course.
If you hanker for publicity, don't be a translator, but if you like quietly beavering away in the background, quietly influencing things whilst others bask in the limelight, then be a translator!
[Edited at 2016-05-01 11... See more A good translator should be like a good waiter in a restaurant. Completely invisible, always there when needed, and impeccable in every way. You should be unaware of her/his presence.
Anyone interested can always ask who it is, of course.
If you hanker for publicity, don't be a translator, but if you like quietly beavering away in the background, quietly influencing things whilst others bask in the limelight, then be a translator!
[Edited at 2016-05-01 11:43 GMT] ▲ Collapse
| | | | Jack Doughty
Wielka Brytania
Local time: 02:22
rosyjski > angielski
+ ...
In Memoriam
In the sense of it not being apparent that a novel is a translation, yes, a literary translator should be invisible.
But the translator should be given a credit in the book for this essential contribution to the finished product.
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Tom in London
Wielka Brytania
Local time: 02:22
Członek ProZ.com
od 2008
włoski > angielski
Jack Doughty wrote:
In the sense of it not being apparent that a novel is a translation, yes, a literary translator should be invisible.
But the translator should be given a credit in the book for this essential contribution to the finished product.
as s/he usually is, somewhere at the front.
| | | | | Good plastic surgeons are invisible | May 1, 2016 |
If a woman looks, say, twenty years younger than her documents say, her plastic surgeon was good in concealing the unavoidable scars left behind. If that surgeon aimed for visibility, his/her job would have been sloppy, a strong deterrent to those in want of his/her services.
My proudest moment in video translation for dubbing was when I had the chance to show the video dubbed in Brazil to its leading (American) actor, who had possibly never heard Brazilian Portuguese being spoken. ... See more If a woman looks, say, twenty years younger than her documents say, her plastic surgeon was good in concealing the unavoidable scars left behind. If that surgeon aimed for visibility, his/her job would have been sloppy, a strong deterrent to those in want of his/her services.
My proudest moment in video translation for dubbing was when I had the chance to show the video dubbed in Brazil to its leading (American) actor, who had possibly never heard Brazilian Portuguese being spoken. Of course, the dubbing studio was the #1, and they had their A-team doing it. That actor watched it very attentively, and then asked me if we had done any frame-by-frame imaging trick to sync so perfectly his mouth movements to the translated script. (Of course not!) ▲ Collapse
| | | | Peter Linton (X)
Local time: 02:22
szwedzki > angielski
+ ...
| Transpreters or interlators | May 3, 2016 |
Christine Andersen wrote:
Many people have no idea what translators actually do, and the same applies even to interpreters.
A classic example of that confusion appeared in a front page article in yesterday's British newspaper Daily Mail about an Iraqi interpreter who commited suicide.
In the headline he was described as a "translator", while in the first words in the article he was "An interpreter....". After that, the Daily Mail used those words interchangeably.
No wonder people are confused when even fairly respectable newspapers cannot get it right. Perhaps we need a new generic word. I suggest transpreters or interlators.
| | | | Tom in London
Wielka Brytania
Local time: 02:22
Członek ProZ.com
od 2008
włoski > angielski
| Respectable ? Not. | May 3, 2016 |
Peter Linton wrote: Christine Andersen wrote:
Many people have no idea what translators actually do, and the same applies even to interpreters. A classic example of that confusion appeared in a front page article in yesterday's British newspaper Daily Mail about an Iraqi interpreter who commited suicide. In the headline he was described as a "translator", while in the first words in the article he was "An interpreter....". After that, the Daily Mail used those words interchangeably. No wonder people are confused when even fairly respectable newspapers cannot get it right. Perhaps we need a new generic word. I suggest transpreters or interlators.
The Daily Mail (or as we call it here in London, the Daily Fail) is a thoroughly disreputable and very reactionary newspaper that panders to the lowest of the low. It is not even slightly respectable.
[Edited at 2016-05-03 18:52 GMT]
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Kay Denney
Francja
Local time: 03:22
francuski > angielski
Tom in London wrote: Peter Linton wrote: Christine Andersen wrote:
Many people have no idea what translators actually do, and the same applies even to interpreters. A classic example of that confusion appeared in a front page article in yesterday's British newspaper Daily Mail about an Iraqi interpreter who commited suicide. In the headline he was described as a "translator", while in the first words in the article he was "An interpreter....". After that, the Daily Mail used those words interchangeably. No wonder people are confused when even fairly respectable newspapers cannot get it right. Perhaps we need a new generic word. I suggest transpreters or interlators. The Daily Mail (or as we call it here in London, the Daily Fail) is a thoroughly disreputable and very reactionary newspaper that panders to the lowest of the low. It is not even slightly respectable. [Edited at 2016-05-03 18:52 GMT]
never ever use that rag as a reference for anything.
we always used to say that it wasn't worth the paper it's printed on; at least some trees are saved nowadays.
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